The subject matter of the present disclosure broadly relates to the art of gas spring devices and, more particularly, to end member assemblies having a single flowed-material joint and configured to include a reservoir chamber with an outer side wall including at least two outer side wall sections secured together by way of the single flowed-material joint. Gas spring assemblies can include such an end member assembly, and suspension systems can include one or more of such gas spring assemblies.
The subject matter of the present disclosure may find particular application and use in conjunction with components for wheeled vehicles, and will be shown and described herein with reference thereto. However, it is to be appreciated that the subject matter of the present disclosure is also amenable to use in other applications and environments, and that the specific uses shown and described herein are merely exemplary. For example, the subject matter of the present disclosure could be used in connection with gas spring assemblies of non-wheeled vehicles, support structures, height adjusting systems and actuators associated with industrial machinery, components thereof and/or other such equipment. Accordingly, the subject matter of the present disclosure is not intended to be limited to use in association with gas spring suspension systems of wheeled vehicles.
Wheeled motor vehicles of most types and kinds include a sprung mass, such as a body or chassis, for example, and an unsprung mass, such as two or more axles or other wheel-engaging members, for example, with a suspension system disposed therebetween. Typically, a suspension system will include a plurality of spring devices as well as a plurality of damping devices that together permit the sprung and unsprung masses of the vehicle to move in a somewhat controlled manner relative to one another. Movement of the sprung and unsprung masses toward one another is normally referred to in the art as jounce motion while movement of the sprung and unsprung masses away from one another is commonly referred to in the art as rebound motion.
In some cases, the spring devices can take the form of gas spring assemblies that utilize pressurized gas as the working medium. Gas spring assemblies of various types, kinds and constructions are well known and commonly used. Typical gas spring assemblies can include a flexible wall that is secured between comparatively rigid end members. A wide variety of end member constructions have been developed and it is has been recognized that different end member constructions have different advantages and disadvantages. In many cases, a different end member construction may be selected and used on each of the two different ends of a gas spring assembly.
In some cases, it has been deemed desirable to reduce the overall weight of motor vehicle, such as to improve fuel efficiency and/or to increase the transportable payload for the same gross weight vehicle. Reducing the weight of one or more components of the pressurized gas system of vehicles can be one contributing factor to achieving such a goal. In many cases, conventional end members have been designed and constructed from metal materials to provide desired performance characteristics, such as strength, rigidity, and robustness of connection with the associated components and/or structures. Reducing the size of such components could be useful in contributing to the reduced weight of a vehicle suspension system, such as has been described above. However, it has been recognized that such size reductions can result in a corresponding reduction in performance.
Notwithstanding the widespread usage and overall success of conventional designs for end members of gas spring assemblies that are known in the art, it is believed that a need exists to meet these and/or other competing goals while still retaining comparable or improved performance, reducing cost of manufacture, improving ease of installation and/or otherwise advancing the art of gas spring devices.